It is well known that drilling platforms, often referred to as derricks, are positioned high above the ground to support and rotate long “strings” of pipe. Depending upon the type of operation, the work floor of the derrick can be anywhere from 5 to 30 feet above the ground, requiring that mechanical pipe handlers be used to raise and lower very large, heavy sections of pipe between the ground and the elevated derrick platform. During drilling operations, for example, tubular casing or drill pipe “tubulars” are lifted up to the rig floor and threaded together end-to-end to form the drill string. This process typically requires the reorientation of the tubulars from a horizontal storage position on the ground to a nearly vertical drill string position above the rig floor. Similarly, during break-down, each tubular must be removed from the platform, and reoriented back to a horizontal position for storage on the ground.
It is well known that the frequency of adding tubulars to the existing drills string is high and can be time consuming. It is also well known that such processes can involve manual handling of the piping and, therefore, can be quite dangerous to personnel working on or near the drill rig floor. As such, many mechanical pipe handlers have been designed to improve the efficiency of the process and to minimize the risk of hazardous incidents. For example, some pipe handlers, or “catwalks”, for transitioning tubulars from the ground level up to the derrick platform are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,764,368, 7,992,646, and U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/689,279, 12/193,309, and 13/968,424.
There is a need, however, for an adaptable pipe transitioning system that can easily be used with drilling platforms varying in height. It is desirable that such a system be simple and efficient, and utilized in either drilling or servicing operations. It is further desirable that such a pipe transitioning system comprise a unitary kicker/indexer system.